Relief news from Qatar, India got a big success, 8 former Navy officers will not be hanged

A Qatari court has commuted the death sentence awarded to eight former Indian Navy personnel last month in an alleged espionage case, the Indian government said. Qatar’s appeal court has commuted the death sentence in the Dahra Global case, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement. However, it did not specify what the court said, saying it awaited a detailed judgment in the case. The development comes weeks after Qatar’s court of first instance accepted an appeal filed by the Indian government against the death sentence awarded to the navy veteran.

Notably, Indian authorities are in close touch with the legal team as well as family members to decide on the next steps. The Ministry of External Affairs said in an official statement that we have taken note of today’s decision of the Court of Appeal of Qatar in the Dahra Global case, in which the sentence has been reduced. A detailed decision is awaited. Our Ambassador to Qatar and other officials were present at the appeals court today along with family members. We have stood with them since the beginning of the case, and we will continue to provide all consular and legal assistance. We will continue further also.

What are the allegations and when did the arrest take place?

Qatari officials alleged that these former naval officers were spying on Qatar’s secret submarine program for Israel. According to local media reports in Qatar, the Indian former marine was arrested on suspicion of leaking sensitive and confidential information to Israel. All the former officials were detained by Qatar’s intelligence agency. The Indian Embassy learned about the arrest of the former naval officers in mid-September last year.